CH. xxxvin. LES OSSEMENS FOSSILES. 3^9 



more or less different from our present species of animals, 

 which had not then begun to exist. It had long been 

 known that strange shells were found buried in the earth's 

 crust, but then naturalists could never be sure that some 

 like them might not be living in other parts of the world 

 without our knowing it, and they had always believed 

 that at least the larger animals had been created quite 

 recently at the same time as man. But here were ani- 

 mals which no one had ever seen upon the earth, and 

 it was impossible to suppose that fifty different kinds of 

 creatures of all sizes, some bigger than an elephant, could be 

 roaming about the world unseen by anyone. Therefore 

 there could be no doubt that long before the time of history 

 or tradition strange animals must have lived and died, and 

 have been buried in the deposits now forming part of the 

 earth's crust. 



And when this was once recognised, and attention was 

 called to these buried animals, little by little other forms 

 were found in older rocks in different parts of the world, 

 which appeared to be less and less like living animals the 

 older the rocks were in which they were found. All these 

 Cuvier described in his famous work called * Les Ossemens 

 Fossiles,' which he published in 1812, and in which he laid 

 before the world a startling history of the long succession of 

 different animals which must have lived in past ages upon 

 the earth. 



And here we must close this very imperfect sketch of the 

 work done by the three French naturalists. You ought 

 chiefly to remember about them that Lamarck suggested 

 that animals have been developed out of a few simple forms; 

 that St.-Hilaire proved that animals of one class are 

 formed on the same general plan, similar parts being altered 



